Audi A3 / S3 / RS3 Photo Gallery

Familiar face, but with distinctive headlight graphics and "double wing" lower fascia.

Five-spoke wheels are 17s, ten-spoke wheels are 18s.

You might think you've seen this car before. But more complex side surfacing than other Audis.

Appears a bit toy-like when viewed from the side. Small sedans have challenging proportions.

Mercedes took greater risks with the exterior of the competing CLA250.

Less toy-like with gray paint and smaller, five-spoke wheels.

View the new A3 at even a slight rearward angle, and that front overhang magically disappears.

Strongly beveled character lines trace a wedge through "flowing and sensual" body sides.

A3 1.8Ts get single dual-tipped exhaust rather than dual single-tipped exhaust.

Refreshingly back-to-basics, or overly spartan? Leather and a large sunroof are standard.

Instrument panel upper gives when pressed with a fingertip, but looks like hard plastic.

Controls mostly easy to use, but base A3's tiny HVAC graphics are hard to read while driving.

Google Earth. Unlike in BMW and Mercedes, display that appears retractable actually is retractable.

Overly firm and flat driver seat provides zero lateral support in curves. Sport buckets optional.

Just enough room for me. If you're tall, maybe not enough room for you.

Trunk of the FWD A3 (pictured) about average for a compact sedan. AWD robs a couple of cubes

The 170-hp 1.8-liter (in photo) and 220-hp 2.0-liter are part of a smooth new engine family.

Smooth, fairly quiet, and either quick (pictured 1.8) or quicker (2.0). Good but not best mpg.

Looks much like other Audis of the front. This is the 2016. Tweaked for 2017.

Highly capable in curves.

Though unrelated mechanically, the S3 looks much like larger Audi sedans, just smaller.

The dramatic CLA, marketed as a coupe, resembles the much larger CLS rather than a Mercedes sedan.

The Golf R shares a powertrain and chassis with the S3, but is a hatchback and costs less.

The S3's relatively short length is most evident from the side. They disguised it well.

Most elegant from the rear quarter. S3 has four exhaust tips, two per side and one per cylinder.

Drooping rear end. Some people like it. I don't. More obviously a high-performance model.

To some people, the A3's spare interior seems cheap. The more expensive S3 has the same interior.

The AMG CLA45's interior employs cheaper materials, but is more aggressively sporty.

Does the S3's interior look much more upscale than the Golf R's?

Cleanly styled to a fault. Round air vents as in the sporty TT.

This is the 2016. The 2017 has reconfigurable LCD instruments.

Audi's reconfigurable instruments.

The $1850 sport seats look great and provide excellent support, but delete power adjustments.

Adults will fit much better back here than in the CLA.

Small trunk, but usually enough.

I neglected to photograph the S3's engine. Here's the same engine in a Golf R. Powerful, but laggy